So now we come to the battalion level support platoons that aren't the kind of run of the mill hotchkiss and mortar affair.
Now we start looking at the bits and pieces that can breathe a little bit of life into our Obrona Narodowa footslogger army!
Today I would like to introduce you to a small project, but a nonetheless a vital one. The Reconnaissance troops of the National Defence Battalions.
 |
| A full Obrona Narodowa Oddzial Zwiadowcow (Scout Unit) |
A blind military force is a dead military force and few armed forces were as aware of this possibility towards the end of the 1930's as the Polish, seeing their neighbours not only outspend them on the race to create a modern armed force but in fact probably lap them more than a couple of times.
Realising that the Obrona Narodowa would have to have at least some way of keeping tabs on whats going on around them they decided that all battalions of the National Defence would have to have at least a token reconnaissance force to keep them in the know.
 |
| Rather than the actual troops choice which will be included within another post I though I would share the WIP for the Type III Battalion army list which has the reconnaissance platoon included in it. |
The Type I and Type II battalions were seen as fulfilling functions behind the front lines and as such were omitted from being seen as needing scouts in their composition but the Silesian Type III battalions (probably the best that the National Defence had to offer) and the relatively new Type IV battalions were seen as being indispensable in fulfilling shielding tasks on the flanks of the front line troops. These organisations were both provided scout formations in their battalions.
 |
| A top down view of the complete Scout platoon |
They had a simple composition of only three sections of ten men each with their platoon command. They were lightly armed, being equipped with nothing more than their rifles and to aid their mobility they were all mounted on bicycles.
 |
| The command team |
The modelling for these was, as with the majority of the rest of the Obrona Narodowa project was pretty simple. The majority of the miniatures are Peter Pig's Spanish Civil War Carlist Requetes with the obligatory head-swaps for Adrian Helmets, and the occasional Czapka. The czapka's are a shame as the Poles would never have worn them in the field instead wearing slouchy kind of field caps called Rogatywka... but nobody sculpts them so ho hum!
 |
| the rear view of the command team |
Even though the Scout Sections are 10 men strong I decided that I needed to put some cycles on the bases just to reinforce the 'mise en scene' so I dropped the total figures to eight per section at four per base. This allowed a little bit of space for landscaping and the addition of one cycle per base. The cycles are all Peter Pig by the way.
 |
| A complete Obrona Narodowa Scout Section |
Just to add a final reinforcement of the whole 'Im a scout, hear me roar!' thing I decided that each base needed at least one figure looking through binoculars and this is the one figure that hasnt come from Peter Pigs SCW Carlist Requetes. Each of the binocular toting miniatures is one of Peter Pigs French WW2 motorised 60mm Mortar team miniatures. The top of the head was shaved off and an Adrian helmet put in its place.
 |
| The rear view of the above Scout Section |
Finally, the painting is pretty standard as per the remainder of the Obrona Narodowa so I wont bore you with it again...
 |
| A close look at one of the Scout Section bases |
But the point is my Obrona Narodowa will now not be caught on the back foot!
 |
| The rear view of the above Scout Section base |
... and that's it folks.
As they are armed only with rifles and carbines there is plenty of opportunity for BAYONETS!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment